Drmic thrilled to be back as an Adelaide 36er with Bullets in turmoil
ANTHONY Drmic says he never wanted to leave Adelaide.
But that’s the thing about professional sport – and especially the NBL. The cutthroat player merry-goround means, sometimes, you don’t get a choice.
That was the 30-year-old’s reality at the end of 2020 when, after four years in the City of Churches, the 36ers went in a different direction and he was forced to find a new home.
That ended up being a move north to the Brisbane Bullets, where he spent the past two seasons. But the versatile Melbourne-born wing sees Adelaide as his basketball home and, this off-season jumped at the chance to return to his old stomping ground.
“I never wanted to leave Adelaide,” Drmic said.
“But big change was happening at the time with (coach) Joey (Wright) leaving and then they brought in a new general manager (of basketball, Jeff Van Groningen) who wanted to go in a different direction.
“But that’s professional sports, it happens all the time.
“The chance to come back showed itself, so I took that opportunity.”
It’s a good thing he did. As he gears up for his first clash with his former team since his return to Adelaide, the Bullets are in turmoil.
A 4-10 start to the season has Brisbane sitting one rung from the bottom of the NBL ladder, only above the struggling Illawarra.
The Bullets started the season with
James Duncan at the helm, sacked him and installed general manager of basketball Sam Mackinnon as coach, who led them for four games, before stepping back from the role. Assistant Greg Vanderjagt is now at the helm – for the time being – amid the search for a new permanent mentor.
A front office power struggle between Mackinnon and chief executive Peter McLennan, along with an ownership based entirely overseas has further complicated matters for Brisbane.
“I think Vandy’s (Vanderjagt) going to do a good job of refocusing them and just worrying about the basketball,” he said. “All of that stuff off the court isn’t really something they need to be focusing on anyway. it’ll work itself out.”